You could be the master theorist of them all but still not have guessed the twist at the end of Attack on Titan. While Eren’s fate seemed pre-decided, no one could have guessed why he decided to become a villain. Hajime Isayama created a controversial ending, but one person had an inkling of where the story was going.
The English dub voice actor of Armin spoke at length about his expectations from the series as well as his position in it. As it turns out, his words might have reached the almighty Isayama via telepathy.
Armin’s Voice Actor Foreshadowed the Ending of Attack on Titan by Hajime Isayama
Just before the final chapters of Attack on Titan were published, the English dub actors of the anime were interviewed. Josh Grelle, the voice actor for Armin Arlert, and Bryce Papenbrook, the cast for Eren, came together to talk about what they hoped for their respective character’s fate.
Grelle added that he hoped for some sort of peaceful and happy resolution for each of the involved characters. His next words, however, foreshadowed Eren’s fate completely.
Because, I mean, that’s no life for Eren, for that to be – if he dies at the end of this or something, having lived in nothing but anger and rage and feeling trapped, I would feel awful for him.
The voice actor already had an inkling that Eren’s actions were not redeemable, and he would have to suffer, most probably by perishing himself. The actor also guessed correctly when he said Eren has lived in nothing but anger and rage. Fans have seen his outbursts in the series and know that Eren holds a lot of pain and hurt inside him, which makes him unable to cross-examine things from the heart.
Did Armin’s Voice Actor Also Guess Eren’s Reason to Become a Villain?
The biggest hope that Grelle had from the ending of Attack on Titan was summarized by him in just a few words.
Peace on Earth, goodwill towards Titans.
Coincidentally, the last part could also summarize the ending of Atack on Titan. Of course, peace on Earth has never been there, be it from Eren’s birth or even before the formation of Paradis Island. Marley posed as a center of peace but just consisted of a hollow and corrupt government that treated the Eldians as slaves.
This leads us to how the Eldians were mistreated for centuries just because people were afraid of their titan powers. The irony is that Marley used the Titans for their overwhelming strength on battlefields but still treated people from the same race as demons.
Thus, ‘goodwill towards Titans’ was a necessary thing to hope for. By the end of Attack on Titan, we realize that Eren made himself a villain so that the Eldians could defeat him and helm the position of heroes, thus erasing the hatred towards them among other humans. In a way, ‘goodwill towards Titans’ was indeed achieved.
You can read Attack on Titan on Viz Media and watch the anime on Crunchyroll.
